Are Christians supposed to be good citizens in their earthly countries?
Matthew tells us that Jesus was asked a loaded question in Matthew 22:15-22 in a united effort to disprove his claim to be God, the King. “Is it lawful to give tribute [a Roman tax levied on individuals and to be paid yearly] unto Caesar or not?” What made the question even more difficult is that it was asked by Pharisees (a religious sect of Judaism) and Herodians (a political party, consisting of mostly Saducees, who supported the Roman appointed Herodian dynasty). You can’t compare the make-up of this group as being like the Democrats and Republicans of the United States’s Congress. This is more like the National Council of Churches conspiring with the entire Federal Government to bring Jesus down.
Jesus knew if he answered one way or the other, one side or the other would be able to accuse him of either being unpatriotic or as having broken God’s Law. His brilliant answer defused both sides (“Render [pay] therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar’s”), added further proof of his Deity to those who rejected Jesus as the promised King (“and [render, pay] unto God the things that are God’s”), and, as an aside, taught his followers the importance of being good citizens on earth.
Are you amazed at how a simple answer could accomplish so much? So were the Pharisees and Herodians.
Our Bible Study on Wednesday evening will be selected from the reading in the New Testament.
- Monday: Genesis 26-30
- Tuesday: Judges 2-6
- Wednesday: Matthew 26—Mark 2
- Thursday: Isaiah 26-30
- Friday: Psalm 4, 54, 104; Proverbs 3
- Saturday: Isaiah 44; Zechariah 6
Follow this link to download a copy (2 pages) of the entire reading schedule: Click here.
Posted in Bible Reading Guides.
Isaiah 43:13-28. Isaiah’s sermon was “preached” to a people yet to be born. In this section, Isaiah proclaims Israel’s blessings from God promised for the future. March 7, 2010.
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Posted in Isaiah, Sermons.
Zechariah 4. What is the most important verse in the Bible for living the Christ-like life? How do we “do” anything for God? February 28, 2010.
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Posted in Sermons, Zechariah.
The number of days for Standard Time is less than the number of days for Daylight Savings Time. Does that make the latter “Standard” and the former something like “Daylight Wasting Time”?
We cannot “save” time, like (we think we can) accumulating things to use at a later date. We can, however, waste time (and have become quite proficient at doing so). Maybe this comparison of time to the brevity of life is why Moses asked of God that He “teach us to number our days that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom” (Psalm 90:12).
I hope that whoever imposes this time adjustment thing and then erroneously markets it as “saving” time will finally realize that daylight is lengthened and shortened according to the seasons and not the clock.
Whatever your thought, answer, reason, or excuse, remember next Saturday evening to move your clock forward one hour. And then, if you close your eyes and “wish upon a star” your dreams…well you can’t because the sun doesn’t know anything about “Daylight Savings Time.”
I only have this week to complete the slide presentations to be shown at the Talbot Bible Lands chapel (March 16). The tail is wagging furiously. I’d appreciate your continued prayer that I will complete this portion of the project with some sense of quality.
Posted in Scribbles, Seeds.
We are a community of three small congregations with services provided in English, Spanish, and Korean. We meet in Bell Gardens, a city southeast of downtown Los Angeles. Our desire is to please God in all that we do, especially in telling what the Bible says about who Jesus Christ is and what He has done for our benefit. We honor Jesus by following and responding to Him as the Holy Spirit guides us, in loving (becoming intensely satisfied in) Christ and loving (seeking the best for) one another. We would like to extend an invitation to you to be His guest, with us, this week. 